Aon has outsourced its entire back-office client operations division to Xchanging in a landmark deal worth £230m.
The 10-year partnership, in conjunction with offshore process and technology skills company Cambridge Solutions, will include current and legacy insurance claims administration and processing, as well as accounting and settlement for clients within Aon's reinsurance division and its specialist and wholesale units.
Xchanging is understood to have fought off Accenture and Capita Insurance Services.
The agreement will see more than 500 employees, based primarily in Romford, Leicester and Glasgow, transfer from Aon to Xchanging.
Xchanging said that once the arrangement with Aon was fully established it expected more outsourcing agreements with other London market companies to follow through its new broker process platform.
Clive Buesnel, executive director, Xchanging, told Insurance Times: "We are providing, as a service, a utility for the entire market, and we aim to take on board both small and large brokers to enable maximum value through leveraging our platform."
But rival broker, Willis, said it would definitely not be outsourcing its claims administration.
Joe Plumeri, Willis chairman and chief executive, said: "It is fast and fair claims payments that clients are buying into. To be a successful broker we must deliver what the client wants, and we can't deliver this effectively unless we own and control the processing function."
